Chasing the New Year
by blueseacowboy
Summary: NIMR celebrates New Year's Eve.


Chasing the New Year

Follows "Rich in Blessings"

"Everything set for tonight, Angie?" Harriman Nelson asked jovially as he entered the outer room to his office, a pretty woman with light brown hair keeping pace with him and holding on almost protectively to his arm.

"Of course, sir. When have I ever _not_ been ready for NIMR's annual New Year's Eve Gala?" she asked with a slightly affronted look on her face.

"Never. But I've been told there's a first time for everything."

"Well, not this year," Angie said with a self-satisfied smile. "Everything is ready or will be."

"I never doubted it," Harry smirked.

"I'm kind of surprised to see you and Dr. Myers here," Angie said, smiling at the woman who had become a huge part of her boss' life in the last few months. "I thought the two of you and Lee were still snowbound in Boston."

"I couldn't miss NIMR's annual New Year's Eve party, now could I?" he joked. "The weather cleared and we left Boston as soon as we could pack up. Lee flew us in this morning. Two weeks under my loving sister's care was more than I could take."

"She was just worried about you, Harry," Cara chastised. "So was I."

"Are you sure you should be here, sir?" Angie asked as she watched the way Cara looked at her boss in concern, knowing the admiral often tried to do more than he should and took extreme umbrage to being told he needed to take it easy. By most people at least, she thought as she watched his demeanor around the pretty woman by his side.

"He _shouldn't_ be here, should you, Harry? You should be home resting, shouldn't you?"

"No…no I don't think so," he answered with a smirk to the woman by his side who looked up at him with affection, mixed with a healthy dose of worry, on her face.

"Harry…"

Gesturing to his head that sported a fading bruise that was mottled with yellows and purples, he said, "I'm all better."

"That's not entirely what Dr. Jamieson said," she frowned. "He said he wanted you to continue to take it easy. That blow you took to your head during the dive in the submersible…"

"…was two weeks ago! I'm fine, Cara. I haven't had a headache in four days and I attribute that one to having to listen to Lee and Edith arguing about whether Edith put too much salt in the shepherd's pie," he said with a grin.

"Why were they arguing about that?" Angie asked, smiling as she thought of how Lee had spent Christmas snowbound in Boston with the admiral, his sister Edith and Cara Myers. After the admiral had been hurt in an accident aboard a submersible from the National Science Foundation a few short weeks before Christmas, plans the admiral had made to spend his first Christmas with Cara in Hawaii came to an abrupt end when he had been forbidden to fly anywhere but Boston upon his release from the hospital in Nova Scotia. Severe winter storms across much of the nation had grounded most of the available flights east preventing Cara from flying any closer to Boston than Santa Barbara. Wanting to do what she could, Angie had met her at the airport, drove her to the admiral's home and settled her in to wait out the storm.

Knowing her boss as well as she did, she was certain he was quite upset at the turn of events. But without the admiral knowing, Lee had taken the Flying Sub and headed to Santa Barbara, skirting the worst of the storms on the way there and back, picked up Cara and flew her to snowy Boston. Judging by the way the calls back to Santa Barbara from the snowbound Nelson had been tinged with a healthy amount of crankiness when he had been forced to change his plans, she knew he had to have been not only surprised by Lee's actions, but delighted.*

"You know those two. Both of them have to be right. I think Lee just disagrees with her so she'll have something to yell about," Harry said with a smile.

"That could be," she agreed, having been in the same room with the two on more than one occasion.

"Angie? If there's anything that needs doing for the party tonight, let me know."

"I will sir, but most everything is ready. We'll work on final set-up around, oh 7:00 I guess. Food, entertainment…everything is set so no need for you to worry. We're just waiting on a few more guests to check in…Admiral Starke and his wife among them."

"Jiggs isn't here yet? Well, a party with plenty of food, drink and dancing is _not_ something Jiggs would risk missing. He and Patricia will be here,"he assured as he guided Cara to his office before turning back. "Oh, is there any coffee?"

Angie's gaze shot to the empty coffee pot in dismay. "Oh no. I'm sorry, sir. I didn't know you would be coming to the office today," she apologized.

"That's because he isn't supposed to be here. Are you, Harry?" Cara asked in a teasing voice.

"I'll only be here for a few minutes. I just want to look over a few reports. Reports I want to show you," he said with a smile and a gentle caress of her cheek.

"I'll have a fresh pot made in a jiffy," Angie assured, trying to hide the smile of pleasure she felt warm her face at the admiral's good mood and the reason for that mood that stared into his eyes.

"Thanks, Angie," he said softly. Wrapping his arm around the woman by his side, the two wandered into his office, their voices hushed as they talked.

Smiling, Angie rose and began to make a fresh pot of coffee, staring out the windows before her with a pensive look on her face as she remembered the first time she'd met the woman who had captured Harriman Nelson's interest.

The admiral, in a misguided attempt to keep his friends safe from his enemies that always seemed near, had decided to leave everything behind…his work, his projects, his Institute, his _Seaview_ …and disappear, sailing off on his sailboat one day. Although he had planned for how the Institute would continue to run in his absence, he hadn't considered how the hole his departure had caused in the Institute and in his friend's lives would impact all involved.

When his wanderings had guided him to the island of Oahu after a storm had damaged his boat, he had met and fallen in love with the pretty marine biologist. **

Angie had met her for the first time about three weeks after the admiral had returned to where he should be…at the helm of his Institute and _Seaview_ …and remembered that despite her worries this unknown woman would hurt the admiral or not be someone she thought would be a complement to him, had found her to be perfect for him.

She remembered she'd been working on writing up some reports on a research project the admiral and _Seaview_ had undertaken shortly after the admiral's return and had been surprised to hear the front gate call.

"Admiral Nelson's office."

"Miss Wood, a woman is here asking to see the admiral. She says her name is Dr. Cara Myers. Should we let her through?"

"Doctor Myers is here? Now?" she squeaked out, knowing the admiral wasn't expecting her for another few days.

"Yes, Ma'am. She said she knows she's early but wanted to surprise the admiral. Her credentials check out. What should I do?"

"Uh…escort her up, Tim. Thank you," she said, casting a quick glance to the admiral's closed office door, knowing he was quite busy at the moment and not knowing how he was going to react. With a little smile on her face, she decided that if what she had heard about the two of them was true, he was going to be delighted. She'd noticed his grumpiness, which wasn't unusual, but knew there was a different reason for it this time: he missed the woman he'd fallen in love with.

A soft knock on her door had her turning to see one of the security guards, Tim Farrow, standing beside a petite woman with light brown hair that fell in curls to her shoulder, soft, pale blue eyes and a slightly worried look on her face.

"Dr. Myers, what a surprise," she called as she rose and walked to the woman's side, holding out her hand. "I'm Angie Wood, Admiral Nelson's…"

"Right hand," Cara finished, a big smile on her face as she took Angie's hand in hers. "And Harry's Assistant Director. He's talked about you so much. It's a pleasure to finally meet you!"

"The pleasure is mine," she assured as she surreptitiously studied the woman before her. "Thanks for escorting Dr. Myers up, Tim," she said turning to the guard who gazed speculatively at both women before leaving the two alone in the outer office.

"I know I should have waited. I wasn't supposed to be here for another few days but…well things slowed down at the lab and Dr. Ishikawa, the director of the lab I work at, told me in no uncertain terms to get out of his hair," she confided with a little shrug and a self-deprecating look. "I guess I was moping a bit."

Angie laughed lightly. "You sound like someone else I know," she said turning her eyes to the closed door before her. "Personally, I'm surprised he hasn't taken the Flying Sub on a little jaunt to Oahu. Since he got back from that research cruise, he's been…well, antsy is the only word I can come up with."

"Really?" Cara asked eagerly.

"He's missed you."

"Oh, I hope so. In Oahu it was just the two of us mostly. But he's back to his real life now and…," Cara shrugged.

"And you think his feelings may have changed?" Angie asked, knowing the admiral was a very private person but one she considered a good friend. She was fairly certain the admiral felt the same way as the woman before her felt.

"He's Admiral Harriman Nelson. I sometimes forget that. When I first met him he was just Harry. I felt so stupid when I looked beyond the hair and saw Harriman Nelson staring back at me!" she laughed uneasily.

"I imagine that was a surprise. When he first came back and stood in front of me in this very office, I didn't see Admiral Harriman Nelson either. It wasn't until he spoke that I saw through the hair! Look, why don't I let him know you're here," Angie said as she sat at her desk and called the admiral.

"Admiral? Could you come out here, sir? There's something that needs your attention," she said with a little grin and a quick glance to Cara who was pacing back and forth, examining some pictures of _Seaview_ that lined the wall across from her desk.

"Yes…I…I'll be right out," he sighed, weariness tingeing his voice.

The sound of the office door opening abruptly had Cara jumping and Angie smiling as she saw her reaction. "Angie? There was something you needed me for?" he asked in a tired tone.

"You uh, you have a visitor," she said simply, nodding to someone standing behind him and smiling as she saw him close his eyes in a decidedly sedate response to what he was certain was someone with more problems for him to deal with.

Pasting a sad attempt at a smile on his face, he turned, expecting anyone but the woman he saw there.

"Cara?" he whispered, as his mouth dropped open in surprise.

"I decided to come a few days early," she said watching his face closely to see if the feelings were still there. Her questions were answered when his face lit up in a brilliant smile and he walked to her quickly, grabbed her up in his arms and swung her about; kissing her thoroughly when he'd allowed her to return to her feet, unmindful of Angie's presence behind him.

"I've missed you," he murmured quietly, but not quietly enough that Angie hadn't heard, her face beaming at Cara who glanced over Harry's shoulder at her.

"How long can you stay?" he asked softly framing her face with his hands and studying her as if she'd somehow changed in the eighteen days seven hours thirty-two minutes and some odd seconds since he'd seen her last.

"I have to be back in a week…ten days," she amended quickly at the look in his eyes. "We're starting some experiments then and I should be there. I guess."

Nelson smiled broadly. "Not much time but we'll have to make do," he said softly as he wrapped his arm about her, drew her close and turned to his Assistant Director who was watching them both with her chin on her hands and a grin on her face.

"Angie, I assume you two have met?"

"We introduced ourselves," she said unable to stop smiling. She was happy for the admiral and hoped the relationship worked out for him. He deserved happiness.

"Well good," he said as he turned back to Cara and stared at her for a moment as if unable to believe she was really there.

She remembered the two had spent a good part of the next ten days together and keenly felt the admiral's sadness when he'd returned from flying her home in the Flying Sub.

The insistent beeping from the coffee pot telling her the brew cycle was finished interrupted her musings and she quickly poured two cups, added cream and two sugars to one, and carried both into the admiral's office.

"Coffee's hot, strong and black. Just as you like it, Admiral," she called as she walked through the open door towards the two marine biologists who were standing by Nelson's desk studying a rather large chart. Placing the lethally black cup before her boss and the sweetened one by Cara, who smiled broadly at her, she asked, "Is there anything else you two need?"

Glancing up quickly, Nelson shook his head. "This will do. Thanks, Angie," Nelson said with a smile before he went back to discussing the chart with Cara.

For the next hour, the two scientists remained ensconced in the admiral's office. At exactly 4:00 pm, the door opened and the two stepped out.

"Angie, I think we're going to head to the house and relax a little before the party," Nelson called as he and Cara left his office.

Shooting a quick glance to the woman by his side who had a slight smirk on her face, she knew Cara had won the, "I don't need to rest" argument and she smiled.

"That's a wonderful idea. As I said, everything is pretty much ready. A few of us will start doing last minute preps around 7:00. Everything will be ready by the time your guests arrive."

"Any word on Jiggs?"

"He called a few minutes ago and said he was running late but he and Mrs. Starke will be here by 6:00 or 6:30."

"Good. Call him back and tell him to come to the house if he gets in before 6:45. We can drive together to the party after that."

"I'll get right on that," she said as she reached for the phone as the two left the office.

~O~

Two hours later, Harry Nelson, resplendent in a black tux, descended the stairs of his house, pulling at the black tie strapped about his neck.

"Wow," a voice from the kitchen called. "You clean up pretty good, Admiral Nelson."

Smiling, he watched Cara walk from the kitchen to stand in front of him. "You…you look pretty good yourself," he said softly as he stared in awe at the woman who stood before him. Dressed in a long gown made of a royal blue with a chunky blue string necklace…a Christmas present from Harry…nestled in the V of her neckline, his mouth went decidedly dry as he stared at her.

"Is something wrong? Is it the wrong length…color…what?" she asked as she stared down at the dress Edith had helped her pick out a few days ago in Boston. "Edith said it was fine."

Grinning, he took her in his arms. "It's beautiful. And perfect. Just as you are," he said punctuating each sentence with a light kiss. "I'll have to thank her when I talk to her."

"Harry," she said blushing at his words and the look on his face. "It's too bad she couldn't fly out for the party."

"Well, she has her own circle of friends and her foundation has its own gala tonight. She's in her element right now," he smirked looking at his watch.

"Element?"

Quirking an eye at her, he nodded. "Bossing people around."

"Harry. You love her and you know it."

"Never said I didn't love the brat. Her bossing and worrying I can do without though."

"Well, tonight there will be no bossing around of anyone."

"And no worrying?" he asked as he drew her close.

"I'll try not to worry."

"I really am fine, Cara. Better than fine. In fact, I don't know when I've felt better."

"All right," she agreed, smacking him lightly on the chest. "No more worrying. Tonight…we party."

"That sounds like a wonderful plan," he murmured as he drew her closer, his lips finding their way to hers in a tender kiss…a kiss that was interrupted way too soon by a loud knock on the door.

Sighing, Harry drew back and frowned. "Someone has extremely poor timing," he quipped stepping out of Cara's arms and walking to the door. Opening it, he found Lee Crane clad in a black tux, a beautiful woman with long blonde hair dressed in a long, shimmery emerald-colored gown on his arm.

"Lee! Kathleen! Come in."

"I hope we're not too early," Lee said as he and Kathleen stepped inside. "Didn't want to run the risk of being late."

"No chance of that. We don't have to be there for awhile yet. Angie said they were going to finish setting up around 1900 hours so we have plenty of time if we want to head over to help with the last minute frenzy."

"I'm betting Angie and her horde have everything under control," he laughed. "I saw Sharkey, Kowalski and a few others of the crew heading over there a little while ago, so I'm assuming she shanghaied them to help out."

"Well, could I get you two anything?" Harry asked. "Wine? Beer? Something stronger?"

"Wine, if it's not too much trouble," Kathleen said softly.

"Make that two," Lee replied with a grin and a quick glance to the woman by his side.

"No trouble at all. Kathleen, I don't believe you've met Cara. Cara this is Kathleen Asper. Kathleen, this is Dr. Cara Myers."

"It's a pleasure! Lee's told me a lot about you."

"Kathleen is a nurse at the Institute's Med Bay," Harry said as he deftly opened a bottle of white wine. "They met…they met the last time Lee was a patient there."

Cara looked up at the slight hesitation in his voice and with a quick glance to Lee whose jaw clenched tightly for just a moment before looking away; she knew "the last time" Harry referred to was when the pair had been attacked while on their way to a conference in Long Beach. Several of Harry's men had been killed in the attack while both he and Lee had been hurt seriously and sent to the Institute's hospital where they had hovered near death for days. It was that episode in Harry's life that had sent him on his soul-searching journey, ending up in Hawaii and, ultimately, in her life.

"Good things come from bad, wouldn't you say, Admiral?" Lee asked with a smile as he accepted the glass of wine from Harry.

"Sometimes, Lee. Sometimes. In this case, most definitely," he agreed as he gazed at Cara who smiled shyly. Handing glasses of wine to the ladies and taking one for himself, he raised his glass and said, "To…the unexpected."

"To the unexpected," they echoed, clinking their glasses together.

"It's a shame Chip won't be around tonight," Harry said after a swallow. "We'll miss him there."

"He won't be coming? That's a shame. Where will he be?" Cara asked.

"He has some special plans with the lovely Dr. Franklin," Lee answered with a smirk.

"Lovely? How lovely?" Kathleen asked in a pretend snit.

"Not as lovely as you," he answered smoothly.

"Well, played, Lee," Harry laughed.

"Thank you, Admiral," Lee grinned.

Turning to Cara Harry said, "Dr. Lisa Franklin is one of my newest employees and is busy working, most days, on finding pharmaceutical applications for plants, both aquatic and terrestrial. She and Chip have been seeing each other for, oh…has it been a month now, Lee?"

"Approximately," he agreed. "He could probably tell you down to the minute how long they've been seeing each other."

"Well, I think that's sweet, don't you, Dr. Myers?" Kathleen asked frowning at Lee.

"First, it's Cara and second, I do actually," she said, winking at Harry who laughed.

At that a loud knock on the side door had Harry hurrying to open it, finding his old friend Admiral Jiggs Starke with his wife Patricia by his side standing there.

"Jiggs! Patricia! Come in! We're just starting the celebrating a bit early," Harry said standing aside to let the two pass.

"Jiggs, Patricia…you know Lee. This is his date for the evening Kathleen Asper. Kathleen is a nurse at the Med Bay," he said, gesturing to Kathleen before turning to Cara who had come up beside him. "You three haven't met yet but this lovely woman is the one you've heard so much about…Dr. Cara Myers. Cara…Jiggs and Patricia Starke."

Patricia stepped forward and enveloped Cara in a brief hug. "It's so good to finally meet you," she said as she stepped back. "As Harry said, we've heard a lot about you. All good!"

Turning to the man by Patricia's side, Cara swallowed hard, wondering how Harry's long time friend would view her, knowing how protective he was of him.

Jiggs Starke stared at her for a long minute, causing Cara to look uncertainly to Harry who had a lopsided grin on his face, before Jiggs stepped forward and enveloped her outstretched hand in both of his. "Cara, I've never been happier to meet anyone," he said sincerely.

Cara laughed as she let out a relieved sigh and smiled. "It's a pleasure to finally meet you, Admiral."

"Jiggs! The name is Jiggs."

"Jiggs, if you're done scaring Cara, is there anything I can get you two?"

"A glass of that wine would be good. It was a long drive up from San Diego."

"One for me also, Harry," Patricia said as she wrapped her arm about Cara's and drew her into the kitchen where Harry was opening another bottle of wine.

"Harry's told us so much about you it feels as though I've known you forever."

"Thank you," Cara said shyly. "I'm sorry we never managed to meet before now. The first time I visited Harry, Admiral Starke had already left the Institute."

"It's Jiggs. Remember? And I didn't know you would be visiting or I would have made a special trip here. Harriman never informed me you were coming."

"It must have slipped my mind," Harry murmured with a twitch to his lips as he handed Jiggs and Patricia glasses. "Besides, she came a bit earlier than I expected."

"Oh, I see. Impatient," Jiggs nodded, rocking back and forth on his heels and attempting to keep the smile from his face.

"Tell us about your work," Patricia said, giving her husband a silent warning.

"Well, we're researching the causation of coral death. We're examining reefs that seem to be thriving and comparing them to those that are dying or have died off. We're also looking at ways to revive coral beds that are declining."

"Revive? How would you do that?" Patricia asked.

"We're looking at the feasibility of growing coral in nurseries then transplanting the coral to dying reefs. Of course that requires us to find a way to keep the new coral from dying from the same things that killed the reef originally."

"Fascinating," Patricia said. "Have you had much luck?"

"Not yet," Cara sighed. "With funding from research institutes such as NIMR, we've made a lot of progress in the last few months but it may be years before we see any results."

"I can see why you and Harry were attracted to each other," Patricia said with a smile. "You have the same gleam in your eyes that Harry always has when he talks about his love, the ocean."

"There's more to the attraction than just the ocean," Harry assured in a low tone causing Cara to shoot a quick glance to him and blushing slightly.

"Uh, Admiral? It's just about 1900 hours. Think we should head on up to the Institute and help put the finishing touches on the decorations?" Lee asked doing his best to hide a smile.

"I hadn't realized how fast the time went. I suppose we should head out," Harry agreed as he took the empty glasses and put them in his sink. "Wouldn't do to let my Assistant Director do all the work now would it?"

"I'm sure she would understand," Lee answered, knowing Angie was just happy to have her boss home where he belonged after his little "vacation".

"Ladies?" Harry said as he opened the door and began herding the group out and to their respective cars.

The ride took only a few minutes as they navigated the windy road to the Institute grounds. Valets that had been hired for the evening met the cars as they pulled up to the main entrance of the Institute's brand new conference center.

"Harriman, every time I come to this institute of yours, I'm continually amazed at what you've built here. Last time I was here this was a barebones structure," Jiggs said with a grin as he gazed at the newest building on the NIMR campus. Large enough to accommodate college classes or high school or elementary groups, its sole purpose of educating the youth in the wonders and conservation of the sea, was a wonder to behold.

The main floor was dominated by a bank of huge windows that fronted the building facing the ocean while skylights allowed natural light to filter below. Huge tanks of freshwater and saltwater pools were housed in the building's basement area allowing research and hands-on experience for the students.

"It did turn out quite well, didn't?" Harry said proudly as he stared at the building before him.

"It did, Admiral," a quiet voice behind him said.

"Mr. O'Brien! I'm glad you could make it tonight. And Mandy, it's always a pleasure to see you. You look lovely," Harry said as he welcomed one of _Seaview's_ officers and his wife, pausing to kiss her cheek lightly.

"Thank you, Admiral. And thank you for inviting us."

"My pleasure, Mandy. We were just about to head inside to help with the finishing touches. Care to join us?"

"Anything to help, sir," the young fresh-faced lieutenant said.

"Well, let's see what Angie has left for us to do, shall we?"

Walking inside, the group found the conference room on the main floor had been transformed into a festive ballroom. Streamers, lanterns, strings of twinkling lights and a big, shiny glass ball hung suspended from the ceiling while tables were scattered around the perimeter of the room. At the far end of the huge room, a band was setting up their equipment and doing sound checks.

"Oh, Harry," Cara gushed as she walked through the doors and saw the room before her. "I haven't been here to see the finished building but this…it's…well it's wonderful."

"Well, you have to imagine it without the glitter and twinkling lights and see it with all the work stations and desks scattered about," he joked. "You'll have to come back when the room is put back to what it was intended for."

"I'd love to," she said as she smiled at him happily.

"I'm just glad the construction continued when I…when I left," he said softly, having been afraid work on the huge project along with others might come to a halt when he had gone away.

"We knew it was important to you, sir," Lee replied as he came to stand by his boss and friend, placing a gentle hand on his shoulder and squeezing. "Even though we didn't know when you would be back, we wanted it to be here when you did."

Harry shook his head as he heard the confidence in Lee's voice that told him he'd known he would return eventually to take back the reins of NIMR. When he'd packed up and sailed away from his home and life, he'd had no intention of ever coming back, believing his absence from his friends' lives would ensure their safety from his enemies. But he'd been shown that removing himself from the picture to protect them didn't mean they were safe or that _Seaview_ and the Institute would continue on as if nothing had changed. When he'd come to the realization that he could do far more good by being Admiral Harriman Nelson, founder and director of the Nelson Institute of Marine Research, and not a sailing bum as he had intended, he'd seen that his return was necessary.

"And for that, I'm extremely grateful," Harry said quietly.

"Admiral!"

Harry and the others turned at the call to see Angie Wood, resplendent in a long, peach-colored gown approaching them rapidly, a young man following quickly on her heels.

"Anything wrong, Angie," Harry asked as he broke from the group to meet her.

"No, nothing. I was just surprised to see you here already," she answered with a smile as she took in the group arrayed in their finest behind her boss. "Well, don't you all look great?"

"You look pretty good yourself, Miss Wood," Harry laughed. "And the room looks wonderful."

"It did turn out nicely, didn't it? Such a beautiful space that we can use for so many purposes. Tonight…it's a party spot," she exclaimed. "Oh Admiral, this is my date for the evening, James Laurent. James this is Admiral Nelson and Dr. Cara Myers, Admiral and Patricia Starke, Lee Crane and his date, Kathleen Asper and Bobby and Mandy O'Brien."

"It's a pleasure to meet the man who has captured my Assistant Director's attention," Harry said with a smile as he shook James' hand and did his best to ignore the blush that crept up Angie's face.

"It's a pleasure to meet you all and thank you for inviting me tonight, sir."

"My pleasure, James. Well, we came to help Angie so, tell us what to do," Harry said with a smile.

"I will not turn that order down at all," she grinned as she pointed the women in one direction and the men in another.

~O~

At 2000 hours precisely, the doors to the conference center/ballroom were opened and guests began filtering through the entranceway and into the festively decorated room, their excited chatter as they gazed about telling Harry they appreciated what he'd built. Food and drinks were consumed freely and the guests danced to song after song as the night went on, edging closer and closer to the midnight hour that would usher in a new year.

"Are you enjoying yourself?" Harry asked Cara who was snuggled tightly in his arms during a slow dance.

"Hmm, very much," she whispered. "I don't remember when I've enjoyed myself more."

"Really? Not even that luau of your father's you conned me into attending?"

Cara pulled away and looked up into Harry's face that was swept clear of amusement. "Conned? I never conned you into going to that luau and you know it."

"Ah, but you knew by telling me your father had once been my commanding officer, no matter for how briefly, that I would be intrigued and give in."

"Well…maybe. But it all worked out, didn't it? You and my dad reconnected, you got to meet my family and we had a nice night. Right?"

"I don't recall the night being nice," Harry said with a frown and a shake of his head.

"You don't? But…"

"What I remember was that it was an amazing night spent with an amazing woman. And some others," he interrupted, laughing at her look of relief mingled with joy. "Definitely not just nice."

"Oh, Harry," she whispered looking up into his blue eyes then glancing away quickly with a slight shake of her head.

"What was that look for?" he asked.

"It's…it's nothing."

"No. It was definitely something," he said in concern. "Tell me."

"It's just…well, sometimes I can't believe I'm…we're…together. I can't believe I'm here in Admiral Harriman Nelson's arms."

Harry laughed and tipped her chin up to look into her eyes. "You're not. You're in Harry's arms. Just Harry. Remember? That's who you were first attracted to. Right?"

"Well…actually I was attracted to Admiral Nelson first," she answered, a blush creeping up her face.

"Really?" he smiled with a raised eyebrow. "Do tell."

"You must know the pull you have on women," she laughed. "I'm definitely not the only one to have fallen for that voice, those eyes, that…"

"That…what?" he joked when she didn't continue.

"That attitude," she growled, smacking him lightly. "The point is there are tons of women that would love to be here in your arms. And yet, it's me that is."

"Tons? I think you're exaggerating," Harry laughed.

"Perhaps. But only by a bit," she admitted with a wicked grin.

"Well, be that as it may, I'm quite happy it's _you_ here with me tonight," Harry murmured as he pulled her closer and danced her slowly about the room.

Not far from the happy couple, Lee Crane and his date danced slowly, their bodies swaying to the music that seemed to surround them.

"Hmmm, this is nice," Kathleen whispered.

"Yes, it is," Lee agreed as he pulled her a bit closer, reveling in the feel of the woman in his arms.

"This is such a nice, festive party. And so big!"

"Well, the admiral doesn't do things in a small way," Lee laughed.

Kathleen turned her eyes to the admiral and Cara dancing closely together and oblivious to all around them. "They look so happy," she said softly with a slight smile on her face as she turned her gaze back to her dancing partner.

"Yeah…yeah they do," he agreed, an indefinable look flitting over his face. "I just…never mind."

"Never mind what? Are you worried about something?" she asked in concern, drawing back from his embrace a bit to look him in the eye.

"It's nothing."

"Lee?"

Sighing, he drew her back into his arms and danced her slowly around the room and away from the couple in question. "I just don't want him hurt," he muttered after they were a safe distance from the other two. "After losing his wife…well, when Maria died, it almost killed him. I don't want him to go through losing someone else. Not the way he lost Maria and not any other way. He deserves happiness." ***

"You think she's going to hurt him?"

"No. Well, not intentionally at least."

"Lee Crane, Admiral Nelson is a big boy and quite capable of taking care of himself. And did it ever occur to you that _he_ might be the one doing the hurting? Unintentionally of course."

"Well, I don't want her hurt either."

"Maybe you should stop worrying about people being hurt and worry about keeping a certain someone dancing very near you happy," she said with an impish smile.

"Oh, is Angie nearby?" he joked looking around him for the woman in question which earned him a smack on the chest.

"No, she isn't. You know who I mean," she pouted.

"Yes, yes I do," he agreed as he kissed her softly. "Better?"

"Hmmm, I bet you could do better."

"Maybe I'm saving the "better" part for midnight. There's something special about a New Year's kiss. It sets the tone for the coming year. A lot rides on it, you know."

"Such as?"

"Kissing someone at the stroke of midnight means you will have a year of luck in love."

"Interesting," she said.

"Isn't it?"

And you know this how?"

"I'm a man well-versed in many things. Sub driving is only one thing I excel at."

"Modest aren't you? What else are you good at?"

"You'll have to find that out on your own. It would be conceited of me to say," he joked.

With that he drew her back into his arms and danced her around the room, passing Harry and Cara who watched them with little smiles.

"They seem good together, don't they Harry?"

"Yes, they do. Normally I'd say workplace romances should be avoided but…my ideas on that may have changed recently."

"Oh. And why is that," she asked in feigned ignorance.

"Well, I can think of someone I wouldn't mind seeing day in and day out at the Institute."

"Hmmm, who might that be?" she asked with a question in her eye.

"You have to ask?" he said, his voice turning low.

"No. Not really," she said, her smile lighting her face. "It would be nice to not have an ocean between us."

"Any time you want to move to California, let me know. I can be in Hawaii in two hours to pick you up."

"Two hours, huh?"

"Give or take a few minutes," he shrugged. "If the new engine modifications we just installed on the Flying Sub work out as they should, we could make it in less than two hours."

"That's good to know," she whispered as he drew her back into his arms.

A tap on his shoulder had him turning to see Jiggs, with Patricia by his side trying to hide a smile, standing behind him. "Mind if I cut in, Harriman?" he asked.

"Yes…yes I do, Jiggs," he smiled as he turned back into Cara's arms.

Another more insistent tap had him sighing deeply before whispering to Cara, "Do you mind dancing with the blowhard behind me?"

"I heard that, Harriman," Jiggs grumped.

"I don't mind," Cara whispered as Harry continued to dance her slowly away from Jiggs. "It will give me a chance to get to know him. And put him at ease about us."

"Why would he be uneasy about us?"

"He's your oldest friend. He has concerns. I'll be fine," she promised as she gave him a quick kiss before turning to Jiggs who took her in his arms and began dancing away from the two left standing with smirks on their faces.

"She'll be fine, Harry. Jiggs just likes to pretend he's a gruff old admiral sometimes," Patricia assured him with a light touch on his arm as she came to stand by his side.

"I'm not concerned about Cara. It's Jiggs I'm worried about," he joked as he turned back to the woman by his side. "Dance with me?"

Patricia settled easily into Harry's arms as he guided her across the floor, doing his best to catch up to Jiggs who seemed to know his plan and steered Cara away from him.

"He's just teasing you, you know," Patricia said. "He's as smitten with Cara as you seem to be."

"Just as long as he doesn't scare her off," he grumped as another attempt to catch up to the two met with failure.

"So, Harry…any future plans with your lovely Cara?" she asked impishly.

"As a matter of fact, I do have plans for her and the future," Harry nodded briefly as he continued to watch his old friend.

Pulling back, Patricia looked up in surprise at Harry who refused to look at her. "You…you have plans for the future with Cara?" she asked a bit surprised at this admission.

A slight grin tugged at his lips as he finally turned his gaze to Patricia. "I do. I plan to kiss her socks off at midnight."

Patricia laughed and slapped her dancing partner lightly. "That's nice but I meant further into the future."

Harry smiled at the question knowing it was in all likelihood on many of his friends' minds. "I just met the woman, Patricia. In the past few months since I've been back home, we've spent a combined total of five weeks together."

"But you had how many months together in Hawaii," she insisted. "Plenty of time to get to know each other."

"True, but my time in Hawaii was…different."

"Different how?"

Harry shrugged and looked away as if the line of questioning made him uncomfortable. "I thought I was never coming back here, Patricia. I thought I was going to spend my days in exile, sailing from one port to another until I found a place no one had ever heard of Harriman Nelson or NIMR. When I met Cara, I found something I didn't know I had been looking for… _someone_ I hadn't known I was looking for. All my energy…my focus…was on her and getting to know her while I was in Hawaii. I didn't have the Institute or _Seaview_ or projects, budgets or missions to think about, worry about or deal with. Now…it's different. I have all those things I thought I had given up right back in my lap. And it's hard to maintain a long distance relationship. You know that."

"I do. I do know that. Jiggs spent so many years away from me with one assignment or mission or posting. But we made it work."

"You did. I remember how much he missed you though. How hard it was for him. On some of those missions he wouldn't shut up about what a find he'd made when he found you," he joked. "Cara and I aren't to that point yet. It's still new."

"And wonderful?" she asked with a grin.

"And wonderful," he agreed with a big smile.

"And you want people to stop taking you two to the next level?"

"Most definitely."

"Well, I'll pass the word," she laughed.

"Good," he smiled just as he felt someone bump into him from behind.

Looking over his shoulder, he saw Jiggs, Cara still in his arms and wearing a little smile on her lips, behind him.

"Care to change partners again, Jiggs?" Harry asked, all but pulling Cara back into his arms.

"If you insist, Harriman," he smirked as he pulled Patricia into his. "By the way, did you ever locate that item I asked you about?"

"I completely forgot to tell you. I have what you asked for. Took some searching but I found it."

"What item?" Patricia asked with a frown.

"Just a memento Harriman promised me some time ago," Jiggs answered evasively, as he continued to sway to the music.

"I should have remembered when you were at the house to give it you. Stop by after we're done here and I'll get it."

"Ah, well, I was hoping to leave for home straight from the dance," he said uneasily.

"Oh." Looking to his watch, Harry said, "Well, it's only 2200 hours now. We could make a quick run down to the house, pick it up and be back here in plenty of time for midnight. I can show you the new wine cellar I had installed."

"I remember you telling me about that," Jiggs said. "I'd love to see it."

Harry looked down at Cara who watched the two with a smile, knowing the "item" Harry had procured for his friend. "Do you mind if I take Jiggs down? I'll be back in plenty of time for that New Year's kiss you promised me," he said with a smirk.

"I thought it was _you_ that promised _me_ a kiss," she murmured. "I don't mind. As long as you aren't gone too long."

With a kiss that left a promise of more to come on her lips, Harry grabbed Jiggs' arm and began to propel him through the room, stopping when he was hailed by Lee.

"Admiral, where are you off to in a hurry?"

"Just heading down to the house to pick something up for Jiggs. Won't be long. Keep an eye on things?"

"If you mean Cara, I'll be happy to," he smirked.

"Thanks, Lee," he said as the two admirals disappeared quickly out the door.

"Thanks, Harriman," Jiggs said after they had left the center and gotten into Harry's car a valet had quickly brought them. "I didn't want Patricia to see it or I would have asked earlier."

"Not a problem. I know how special it is to you.'

The ride to the house was accomplished quickly and the two headed inside.

"So, let's see this new addition to your house," Jiggs said.

"Wait until you see some of the labels I've found," Harry crowed as he ushered Jiggs into the house and across the living room to a door that led down a short flight of stairs, the air decidedly cooler as they descended. Walking to a door located in approximately the center of the cellar, Harry opened it, flicking on a light switch located just inside that brilliantly illuminated the interior and stood back to let his friend slip inside.

Jiggs whistled softly as he stared in appreciation of the room Harry had constructed. Three of the walls were covered in wine racks, most still empty, but some holding bottles of reds, whites, roses and a few bottles of champagne. In the exact center of the room was a butcher block style tasting table complete with racks below for more storage and wine glasses. Recessed lighting lit the far reaches of the room in a soft glow, while brighter lights highlighted certain sections.

"I knew you were building this but…well, this is something," Jiggs said in appreciation as he walked through the room. "You have a nice variety already."

"I do, but as you can see there's room for a lot more. I'll slowly build the stock up. Maybe some day I'll install a seating area outside the wine cellar. Temperature in here stays between 55 and 58 degrees so I think it's a bit too chilly to stay in here for long," he joked as he watched Jiggs peer at the bottles already nestled in the racks.

"What are these rack made of?" Jiggs asked as he ran a hand over the smooth wood.

"The racks are made of redwood as is the ceiling," he said pointing to the tongue and groove panels above that covered the existing roofing with a matching colored wood, adding to the ambiance of the room. "The floor is reclaimed wine barrels. I was fortunate enough to find enough of almost the same color as the racks and ceiling."

" _You_ were fortunate enough?" Jiggs asked, turning to his friend with a quirked eyebrow.

"Well, the designer found enough," he shrugged, a small smile lighting his face.

"Long term this is going to be a good investment for you. Assuming you don't drink all the profits," Jiggs joked.

"No worries about that," he laughed. "And now for what we came down here for."

Walking to a rack on the far side of the room, Harry pulled a dust covered bottle from it and handed it carefully to Jiggs. "Here you go old friend. A vintage bottle of Schonenberg."

"I…how did you ever find one?" Jiggs asked as he took the bottle almost reverently.

"I didn't find anything. Angie found it. You'll have to ask her the particulars. I think after my…vacation from being the head of NIMR, and you stepping in for me, she felt obligated to do something nice for you despite the fact you scare the pants off her."

"I don't scare the pants off her," Jiggs grumbled. "I just have a loud voice."

"All right. We'll go with that," Harry laughed. "Either way, you have your bottle."

"Patricia will be surprised," Jiggs said with a huge, smug smile. "I've been promising her for over twenty years that I would find another bottle of this vintage. Tomorrow when we celebrate our twenty-fifth wedding anniversary, I can give it to her. I can't thank you enough, Harriman. I've been trying, half-heartedly I admit, over the years to find a bottle. I'm so busy I just never took the time."

"And it kept slipping your mind, right?"

"You got me. I'll thank Angie when we get back to the party. What do I owe you for this?"

"Nothing," Harry said succinctly.

"Harriman…"

"No, Jiggs. You did me a huge favor stepping into my shoes as NIMR director when you should have been using your leave time to be with your wife, daughter and grandkids. I owe more than I can ever pay you for what you did."

"I…you don't owe me anything. It's me that owes you for…"

"Stop. I've told you more times than I can count that you don't owe me anything. Not for the wine and not for anything else you feel you owe me. Now, why don't we head back and…"

At that moment a rumbling could be heard all around them and the floor beneath their feet began to sway. The lights flickered ominously a few times then winked out, casting the room in pitch-blackness. Bottles of wine began to fall from the wine racks, splashing their contents on the wood floor, while crashing and the sound of dishes breaking could be heard from above.

"Earthquake!" Harry yelled unnecessarily. "Get to the door!"

~O~

Back at the dance, Cara was standing by Patricia's side, talking animatedly about her research when she felt the first shuddering of the room.

"What...what's happening?" she asked as a low rumble could be heard just before a violent shaking rocked the room, sending decorations, dishes and glassware to the floor in a loud crash.

"Earthquake!" Patricia shouted, herding Cara to a safer spot in the room, watching as the others did the same.

Cara felt fear flow through her as she felt the temblor roll on and on in what seemed to her to be a very long time, but in reality was only a few seconds.

When the room had ceased its sideways dance, she raised her head to peer about and moaned at the scene before her. All the festive decorations that had been so painstakingly arranged about the room were lying in heaps on the floor. People were beginning to rise to their feet at the realization the earthquake had passed, for now.

"Cara!"

Turning, Cara saw Lee with Kathleen in tow hurrying towards them.

"Are you two all right?" he asked both women.

"I…I'm all right," Cara assured Lee.

"Mrs. Starke?"

"I'm fine, Captain. Is anyone hurt?" she asked, as she brushed off her long evening gown and began to assess the situation as only a seasoned admiral's wife and former nurse could.

"I haven't had a chance to make sure."

"Well, let's check. Kathleen, I believe I've been told you're a nurse?"

"I am," she assured.

"Then let's start assessing the injuries if there are any," she ordered as the two headed to where a large group of people were clustered.

"Are you sure you're all right?" Lee asked in anxiety as he watched Cara's face closely for any indication she was hurt.

"I'm fine, Lee. It wasn't my first earthquake but it was my first one indoors," she replied, smiling at Lee's confused look. "Hawaii has earthquakes all the time. Most not as big as what we just experienced, but they occur frequently near the volcanoes. I'm usually outside when they happen though."

"Well, outside is usually better than inside," he said.

"Did Harry come back?" Cara asked, worry clouding her face.

"No, no I haven't seen him," Lee answered, glancing about the room quickly as concern for his friend filled him. Wiping the anxiety from his face, he turned to her, a smile lighting his face. "He's probably all excited about what we just went through and will probably come bursting through those doors any minute."

"I hope so," she whispered. "Come on. Let's see what we can do to help."

After more than a few minutes of assessment, both Kathleen and Patricia were relieved to find no injuries to any of the guests other than a few bruises and small cuts from broken glass. A quick inspection outside by some of the _Seaview's_ crew had shown that a hillside on the far end of the NIMR campus had collapsed, sending an avalanche of sand, dirt and small trees to the beach below, but no other obvious consequences of the quake were seen.

"Skipper, the men made a quick check of the area and haven't spotted anything dangerous," Chief Francis Sharkey said as he came through the doors to stand by Lee, Kathleen, Cara and Patricia. "Power is out in all of the labs and buildings but the generators are up and running. We should be good for awhile. _Seaview_ rode the quake well and seems to be no worse for the shaking she endured."

"Well, that's good. Everyone here seems to have escaped with only minor injuries."

"Lee?" Cara called. "Harry and Admiral Starke should have been up here by now, shouldn't they?"

"Yes, they should have," he said doing his best to keep the worry from his face. Looking down at her fear-filled face; he reached a hand out and cupped her elbow. "He's all right. Probably just taking care of some things at the house before he comes back up."

"Can we…can we go make sure he's all right?" she asked in a small voice.

"Just to ease your mind, let's try to call first. If the phone lines are still up, we should be able to get through to him," he said with a grin as he walked to one of the classrooms and picked up the phone, dialing the admiral's number quickly. His smile slowly disappeared as the call went unanswered.

Putting the phone down gently, he turned to the others behind him. "No one's answering. Maybe the lines to his house are down."

"Or he can't answer," Cara whispered as she turned on her heel and, with Patricia beside her, headed out the doors, Kathleen and Lee following quickly along with a few of the crew that had heard about the admiral.

~O~

Coughing as the dust about him settled, Harry pushed the remains of his wine cellar's roof off his legs, blinking in the Stygian blackness that met his eyes.

"Jiggs!" he called in anxiety. "Jiggs…where are you?"

"Right here, Harriman," he called smacking a hand down on his friend's leg. "Right here."

"Are you all right?"

"Yeah, yeah I am. How about you?" he asked as he sat up, his prize bottle of wine still clutched in his hands.

"I…I think I'm all right," Harry acknowledged, a touch of surprise in his voice as he sat up.

"That's good," Jiggs said. "More good news is the wine you just gave me is fine, too."

"Well, let's see about getting out of here and back to the party, hmm?"

Harry rose and felt his way along the wall to where he knew the door was, reaching it quickly. He grabbed the handle and pulled, expecting the door to open easily only to find it didn't budge. A few more minutes of violent shaking intermixed with bouts of passionate swearing proved non-productive and he thumped his head against the door in frustration.

"We're trapped," he said morosely. "On New Year's Eve…I'm trapped in my basement with you while a beautiful woman is waiting for me."

"I'm not too happy about that either, Harriman. As much as I like you, it isn't you I want beside me at midnight."

"Let me see if I can find a flashlight or a lantern. I know there's one here somewhere," he all but growled as he began to move cautiously towards where the supposed flashlight was, tripping occasionally over debris that littered the floor.

"Here it is," he called flicking it on and illuminating dimly the cellar they found themselves trapped in. "Damn," he whispered.

Jiggs walked to Harry's side and stared at the remains of his new wine cellar. The sub-roof had collapsed onto the floor below taking a few of the racks with it causing a puddle of wine to pool on the wine-barrel floor.

"I'm sorry, Harriman."

"It's just a room and some wine, Jiggs. The real question is, is everyone at the party all right?"

"Do you have a phone down here?"

"Yes. On the other side of the door. They're going to install it in here next week."

"Poor timing."

"Yeah. Poor timing," he muttered despondently as fear for Cara, Lee and the others welled up inside him. The Institute was situated on a bluff overlooking the ocean. He fervently hoped it was still on the bluff and not on the beach below it.

"They're all right, Harriman. We're all right. That's what's important."

"Yeah…yeah, you're right," he said with a slap on his friend's shoulder. "Might as well get comfortable. If I know Lee, he's on his way here now." _If he and the others…and Cara...were all right._

Both men slid to the cool floor, Jiggs carefully making a secure nest for his wine with an old towel he found.

Sighing, Harry laid his head back against the wall and suddenly chuckled.

"Something funny, Harriman?"

"I…I was just remembering how many New Year's Eve's we've spent together."

"More than a few. We spent them in some nice places and in some not so nice places. Remember Christmas break of our plebe year? I had no place to go and you invited me home to Boston. You were no sooner through the door of that mansion of yours than you had your uniform off and were into jeans, a sweater and loafers. Couldn't wait to put those first months behind you, could you?"

"It wasn't a good first few months," Harry grumbled.

"Bah, those other morons just needed to realize who and what you were. Once they found out, and you started to beat them at every turn, things changed. For both of us."

"Would have been nice earlier but you're right. We found our way, didn't we?"

"And that New Year's Eve party your parents threw that year? Every girl within a five mile radius was there to check you out. I think they were disappointed you didn't wear your uniform for them though."

"Your memory of that time differs from mine, Jiggs. What I remember was every girl in a five mile radius showed up to see who I had brought home with me from the Academy," he laughed. "And to see said person in their uniform."

"Ah, I was just fresh meat, Harriman. You'd probably loved all of them at one time or another and dumped them. That causes hard feelings you know."

Harry made a rude noise and settled back against the wall, looking for a more comfortable spot, smiling as he thought of the lovely ladies that had danced the night away with them.

"That _was_ a good night for sure," he whispered.

"It was. But not as good as the New Year's Eve party your parents threw the year the war ended. We both had the good fortune to be back on American soil at the same time."

"I remember. I was headed to Groton to train at the Naval Submarine Base before being posted to my first submarine," he said with a smile, his memory of that time filling him with an unexpected warmth.

"And I was headed to the Naval War College in Newport."

"But we managed to catch up to each other and headed to my parents'. Remember _that_ New Years Eve, Jiggs?" Harry asked with a smile in his voice.

"Oh, I remember old friend. I remember that, again, every girl in the neighborhood, and a few others, was there and this time they all had eyes only for you. I can still see you standing across the room from me all decked out in that three-piece suit like some banker would wear, a drink in your hand and a supreme look of confidence on your smiling face as soon as you entered the room. I also remember a tall brunette who walked through the door, spotted you across the room all decked out in that suit and stopped short, her mouth hanging open as she stared at you. I can still picture that smug look on your face when you saw her reaction. Remember her?"

"Oh, I remember her…Susanna Jane Flanagan," he sighed. "It was a very good New Year's Eve."

"I don't recall seeing a whole lot of you after that party," Jiggs grumbled. "I had to find ways to entertain myself while you were entertaining the lovely…uh…"

"Susanna Jane Flanagan," he repeated. "And we did invite you and one of her friends along when we went out."

"That's true enough but old what's-her-name and I never got on well. What _was_ her name?" he asked in frustration.

"Uh…Sarah something…Sarah O'Halloran I think."

"That's it. Not the friendliest date I've had."

"My apologies on choosing the lovely Sarah as your companion," Harry laughed.

"I made do. We…"

What Jiggs was about to say was interrupted by a loud pounding on the door.

"Admiral? Are you in there? Are you all right?" he heard Lee's anxious voice calling.

Rising, Harry walked to the wine cellar door and leaned against it. "We're both fine, Lee. Just a bit cold. The door seems to be stuck though."

"We're working on getting you out. Looks like the door frame may have shifted during the quake. I sent Kowalski and Sharkey to get some tools to open it. It may take some time."

Harry sighed then asked anxiously, "Cara? Is she all right? And the others?"

"Cara is fine, Harry!" Cara called. "Everyone at the party is all right also including Mrs. Starke who's right here with me. No real damage was done."

"That's good news. What time is it anyway?" Harry asked, unsure how long he and Jiggs had been in the cellar.

"It's…it's 2330, Harry," Cara called."

"2330! Lee, how long will it take to get us out? Midnight is in thirty minutes!"

"I know that, sir. We're working on it."

"I'm sorry, Cara," Harry called through the door.

"It's not a problem, Harry. It's only one day."

"A special day!" he called back.

"I know. But, as long as everyone is all right, it doesn't matter."

"It matters to me," he muttered.

"What?" Cara asked.

"Uh…nothing. It's nothing, Cara," he said as he glared at the door, his mind working furiously on how he could greet the New Year with Cara by his side.

"Just try to relax, Harry," she called. "And stop glaring at the door. It won't help."

Harry snorted, then turned when he felt Jiggs' hand on his shoulder. "She knows you well, my friend," he said with a smile.

"Yeah. I just…it's our first New Year together. You only get one first New Year," he pouted. "I wanted it to be special and now…well, this isn't what I had in mind."

"Not my idea of a good time either. But what can you do?"

"Yes, what can I do?' Harry muttered to himself, a look of concentration on his face that even in the dimness cast by the flashlight, Jiggs didn't miss.

"Just what is going on in that brain of yours now?" he asked.

"Nothing. Nothing at all, Jiggs," he said simply.

"Why don't I believe you?"

"I have no idea at all," he said with a supreme look of innocence on his face. "We might as well sit down. It may be awhile."

When both men had seated themselves, Harry gestured to the bottle of wine cocooned in the old towel by Jiggs' side. "You know, you never really told my why that particular vintage was so special."

"I didn't? Hmm…how about that," he said nodding.

"Soooo…why?"

Jiggs sighed and laid his head back against the wall. "Remember Manila?"

"Manila and our little covert ONI operation that blew up in our faces would be rather hard to forget. What does that have to do with the wine?"

"You and I were both hurt in that mission that sent both of us to that field hospital in Manila before we were flown back to the base in Germany to recuperate."

"I do remember all this Jiggs. I was there."

"Well, you also remember that's where I met Patricia. In Germany."

"Of course. She was one of the nurses at the base there. She took care of both of us."

"Well, we sort of had a special night. This was after you had been sent back to Walter Reed for more surgery on your back from that bullet wound you forgot to tell me about," he said gruffly.

"I didn't _forget_ to tell you. I… _elected_ to not tell you since you were hurt pretty badly and needed me to get us out."

"Yeah…I…I know, Harriman," he said, his voice softening in gratitude as he remembered how the man by his side had carried him to safety despite the fact he had a bullet in his back: an act he would never forget or feel he had adequately expressed his appreciation for.

"So, I'm back in the States and you and Patricia had a night. Why the wine?"

"That special night was the night I asked her to marry me. I thought there was no way she would say yes but I knew I had to act fast since I was about to be sent home. So I found a bottle of this local wine from this small vineyard and took her to a little spot up on a hill overlooking the town and asked her."

"And she said yes," Harry said.

"No. She asked me what kind of addle-brained question was that. Said we had only known each other for four weeks and some of that time I'd been drugged up."

"I think I'm lost. She said no, yet the wine you were drinking was special?"

"She said no but not a forever no. It was that night I knew she eventually would be mine. She just didn't know it," he smirked.

Harry stared at Jiggs for a long moment before breaking out into laughter. "Who knew you, Admiral Jackson "Jiggs" Anthony Starke, were a romantic!"

"Cut it out, Harriman. And you so much as tell anyone…and I mean anyone…and our friendship is over!" he blustered, waving a finger menacingly in Harry's direction.

"Relax, Jiggs. Who would believe it?"

At that the sound of machinery at the door could be heard and both men rose to their feet, hoping rescue was at hand. A few minutes passed before the door sprang open to reveal, Lee, Patricia, Kathleen and Cara all staring at them with Kowalski, Sharkey and a few others from the crew off to the side with big grins on their faces.

Cara smiled and walked into Harry's outstretched arms, kissing him quickly.

"What time is it, Lee?" he asked in anxiety.

Looking to his watch, he frowned then looked up. "It's 0002 hours, sir. We missed it by two minutes. I'm sorry."

"I…I'm sorry we couldn't get you out any sooner, sir," Sharkey muttered.

"You tried, Chief," he said slapping him on the shoulder. "Lee? Kathleen? You both missed your first New Year's kiss, how do you two feel about chasing down the New Year?"

"Chasing…what?" Lee asked confused.

"The Flying Sub," he answered smugly. "If we hurry, we could be in Hawaii by midnight Hawaiian time…or at least close to Hawaii."

A huge smile broke out on Lee's face and before he could ask, Sharkey sang out, "Ski and me can have FS-1 ready in ten minutes, Admiral!"

"Get on that, Chief," Harry ordered.

Aye, sir!" they both crowed as they ran up the stairs.

"But Admiral, Hawaii is at least four hours away," Kathleen said confused. "Even with the time difference of …what…two hours we'll never make it."

"That's true… _if_ we were traveling by airplane. But the Flying Sub flies at Mach 2, over twice the speed of a normal airliner. With some luck and an errant tailwind, we might make it in under two hours. Might even be able to get to Honolulu in time to see the fireworks we were going to watch before my little pre-Christmas accident," he said as he turned to Cara who had come up beside him with a smile on her face.

Slipping his arm around her he continued, "Even if we don't get there in time, we'll greet the New Year somewhere in, or over, the Pacific. You interested?"

Lee looked down at Kathleen who looked up at him, an eager smile lighting her face. "I think we're in, sir."

"Good. You drive," he joked with a slap on the back. Turning, he looked into Cara's eyes and smiled. "I promised you a kiss at midnight and I always do my best to keep my word. We'll just be in a different time zone than we had intended. Or the time zone we had originally planned on before my accident."

"I'll call my dad!" Cara said with excitement in her voice. "We can land at his dock if we get there in time. The fireworks are always visible from his beach!"

Harry watched Cara hurry to his phone outside the wine cellar and turned to Jiggs who had a slight smile on his lips. "Jiggs? How about you and Patricia? We can squeeze you two in somehow."

Jiggs looked down at his wife of almost twenty-five years and shook his head at the look in her eyes. "Thanks, Harriman but I have something special planned for tomorrow."

Harry smiled, knowing the present his old friend had for the woman looking at him with love in her eyes. Snapping his fingers, he said, "I'll be right back," before disappearing back inside his ruined wine cellar, emerging a few minutes later with four champagne flutes, a bottle of champagne which he gave to Lee, and a towel-wrapped bundle which he handed to Jiggs.

"Harry, what on earth is that?" Patricia asked, pointing to the package her husband cradled close to his chest.

"It's…"

"It's not anything you need to worry yourself about, Mrs. Starke," Jiggs answered.

"But…"

"You'll find out tomorrow…err…later today," he said with a smile.

Shaking his head in amusement, Harry turned when he felt Cara come up beside him. "Dad says to get a move on. Most of the food is gone and the liquor is taking a serious hit. He's clearing the dock just as he's done before," she assured, smiling as she remembered the times in the past few months since Harry had returned to his life in California that he'd flown FS-1 to her father's dock where his sailboat, _The Icarus_ , was still moored.

"Well, let's head out," Harry said, taking Cara's hand in his and heading up the stairs into his ruinedupstairs.

Stopping for just a moment, Harry shook his head as he surveyed the upstairs. Books littered the living room floor while broken dishes and glasses covered the kitchen. Feeling Cara's hand squeezing his, he looked down at the look of concern on her face and smiled. "They're just dishes, Cara. As long as you and everyone else are all right, it doesn't matter. Besides, I never really liked those dishes. Come on."

The four drove quickly down to the Institute dock where emergency lights illuminated his submarine, a smile lighting Harry's face as he saw her dancing slightly in the waves that rocked her gently.

"I'm so glad you had the sub pen moved to the surface, Admiral," Kathleen said. "I love watching her and all the activity around her from the Med Bay windows when I'm on a break."

"I'm pretty happy about it too, Kathleen," he agreed. "The underground pen served a purpose when she was new and still secret, but I must admit to getting the same enjoyment as you out of watching her from my office."

"Here we are!" Lee called as he pulled into a parking spot near the dock

Getting out of the car, they were almost immediately met by Sharkey, Kowalski and a few others who emerged from the mighty submarine.

"Flying Sub is all ready, sir!" Sharkey called out happily.

"Thanks, Chief. I'm sorry your New Year's Eve was ruined. To make up for it a bit, the remaining wine in my cellar is yours and any of _Seaview's_ crew that are still about."

"Sir, we can't take your wine," Kowalski said.

"There are only a few bottles left that aren't broken, Ski. Consider it a gift," Harry said slapping the seaman on the back as he and the others climbed aboard _Seaview_ and disappeared below followed by Kowalski and Sharkey.

Walking through the Control Room to the Flying Sub hatch that was already open, the whine of the little sub's engines already humming could be heard coming from below. The group climbed quickly down the ladder. Lee headed for the pilot's seat, after securing the champagne, while Cara and Kathleen arranged themselves in the two seats in the back.

"This is so exciting," Kathleen exclaimed. "I've seen the Flying Sub flying over the Institute and always wondered what it would be like to fly in her but I never in a million years expected to ever find out!"

"It pays to know the right people," Harry joked as he stood by Cara's side, knowing she had been up in FS-1 before and had enjoyed it after an initial apprehension. "Ready?"

Cara's excited nod had Harry smiling as he seated himself in the co-pilot's seat and strapped in. "Let's go, Lee! New Year's is out there waiting for us to find it," Harry said.

"Let's do this then. Chief," Lee called into his mic to the man he knew was waiting in the Control Room. "Ready for launch."

"Aye sir, all systems green. You're good to go. Good luck!"

"Thanks, Chief," Harry called before looking to his watch and resetting it to Hawaiian time. "Let's move, Lee. It's 0017 now. We have less than two hours to chase down midnight!"

"Aye sir," he laughed as he launched the small sub.

~O~

Thirty minutes later, Cara called from the back of the sub. "Harry, it's almost midnight whatever area we're flying over. Why don't we just land?"

"Because that my dear would be boring. Now, landing at your dad's dock with all your family there is a much better plan. Think of the entrance we'll make! Trust me. We can make it. Can't we, Lee?"

"We're actually making better time than I anticipated. The weather is cooperating and we're on schedule for a midnight landing. Those upgrades to the engines you ordered are working pretty well."

"See? What did I tell you? Piece of cake," Harry called to the others behind him who merely shook their heads and laughed.

Almost an hour later, Lee looked to Harry. "How much time do we have yet, sir?"

Looking to his watch, Harry grimaced. "Less than fifteen minutes. It's going to be close but we may just have time to pop the cork on that champagne we brought."

"I think we can make it," Lee agreed. "I'll request clearance for a sea landing and give our coordinates."

After a brief conversation with air traffic control, Lee smiled and said, "Honolulu has given us the green light and confirms no ocean going vessels are in the area. We're good to land."

"Well, land, Lee!" Harry joked.

A short few minutes later, the small sub skimmed over the ocean before landing smoothly on the dark glass-like surface, sending spray kicking up about it as she edged closer to an area that was brightly lit with tiki torches. A sailing yacht edged up against a long pier that jutted out from the left side of the small lagoon bobbing gently at the waves the sub's landing had caused.

Harry smiled as he saw his sailboat, the stern still emblazoned with the name he'd chosen for her when he'd fled his life and responsibilities: _The Icarus_. A small group of people lined the small lagoon's beach all waving frantically at them to hurry, which they did. Lee opened the top hatch quickly and allowed Cara and Harry to climb from the sub and to the gently rocking pier followed by Kathleen and himself.

Walking down the long pier opposite his sailboat was a tall well-built man of about seventy, graying hair blowing in the warm tropical breeze and a champagne flute in his hand. Harry smiled as he watched his former commanding officer, and Cara's father, stride down towards them

"Cutting it close, but I think you're just in time!"

"We did our best, Jerry," Harry called as he took the champagne, popped the cork and poured it into the glasses.

No sooner were the glasses filled than voices on the beach began the countdown, "Ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three, two, One! Happy New Year!"

Clinking their raised glasses, Harry said, "To the New Year!"

"To the New Year," the other three yelled before taking a quick sip of the champagne.

Harry gazed at Cara for a long second before wrapping her in his arms and planting a long, sweet kiss on her eager lips, Lee doing the same with Kathleen as fireworks from some place nearby exploded into the warm Hawaiian New Year's sky.

Breaking away leisurely from Cara's warm mouth, he looked down at her, a finger gently tracing the curve of her cheek and whispered, "Happy New Year, Cara."

"Happy New Year, Harry," she returned, a brilliant smile lighting her face as she gazed up into warm blue eyes that seemed to twinkle with the reflections of the fireworks.

Leaning closer to her, he whispered softly in her ear, "May this year be even better than the last and filled with more of the unexpected."

"I'll drink to that," she whispered, snuggling into his chest for a moment before turning to watch the fireworks that still exploded into the air. "I will definitely drink to that."

The End

" _May the Lord keep you in his hand and never close his fist too tight on you. And may the face of every good news and the back of every bad news be toward us in the New Year."_

Traditional Irish saying

* Rich in Blessings

** Sea of Faces

*** A Voice from the Shadows

Thanks for reading!

Thanks also to my betas who read over this story for me and pointed out my errors. It's good to have another set or two of eyes and a few extra brains to read over my "final" drafts! I appreciate all your time and help more than I can say.


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